1982 Corvette

[ModelcarJR]

This is an old Monogram kit that I won in the raffle last Saturday at the Houston Area Modelers contest. Its not a very good kit, few pieces and not a lot of detail. But I am going to use itud as  guinea pig for a two- any part clear. First, I painted it Dupli-Color Bahama Blue Metallic and gave it one coat of clear to protect the paint and to get rid of the dull look of the lacquer so I can see any issues. I am going to let it dry for a couple of days and then rub out with some 3,000 5,000, and 7,000 sandpaper. Once that is done the clear and hardener that i ordered should be here and I can get to mixing it and using the airbrush to give it a few coats of clear.  I'm hoping I can rub it out with just Scratch X. 

My reason for doing it is that is seems everyone at contests are going with the mirror finish, which I have an issue with, but I am going to give it a shot to remain competitive. I did OK at the contest with a couple of 3rds and a couple of 2nds.  The Mustang Boss 351 took a second.  The contest had a theme which was "1964" and "Mustang" . There were two theme awards for Best 1964 and Best Mustang. I am proud to say that the 1971 Mustang Boss 351 also took Best Mustang. I would like to thank the Houston Area Modelers for the award. Thanks for looking!?

 

[KWT]

I actually loved building this kit. Looking forward to yours.

[kelson]

It does lack detail,you could always kitbash i with the 78'vette for a better build.

[slusher]

The 82 kit you have is like a basic builder kit John.  Congratulations on your wins!

[ModelcarJR]

Thanks, Jeremy, Curtis and Carl! I appreciate your comments! 

Having second thoughts about using a 2 part clear on this one. I usually use 4,000, 6,000 and 8,000 micro-mesh cloths to rub out a body. But my cloths are getting old and used up. There used to be a company called LMG Enterprises that packaged a wonderful set of micromesh cloths and foam backing pads but they are out of business. The last set of mesh cloths that I purchased from another seller had a cloth in it (12,000 to boot) that scratched one of my paint jobs horribly. So I am reticent to buy cloths again. I saw someone using 3.000, 5,000 and 7,000 sandpaper that looked like it worked well. So I bought some (sandpaper is much more reasonable and there was a lot of it) and used it today for the first time on this Corvette. The results are impressive to me. But the clear and hardener for the 2 part on on their way so I guess I'll give it a try. Thanks for looking! ?

[Mopar - D]

Looks good John. I’ve been using the pads from Hobby lobby they seem to work but don’t last very long. 

[ModelcarJR]

Thanks, Dan! I have used them too with the same experience. They don't last too long. 
 

I am still waiting on the 2 part clear and hear that the Post Office has it now.  I've detailed a few other things, the engine, interior, tires. I thought that the brown and tan interior would look OK but I am re-thinking the brown in the cargo area. I may repaint it tan. I added some paint to the engine and that's it and Fireball Modelworks Goodyear decals to the tires. I removed the side exhaust pipes from the frame and I may just add a thin piece of plastic to the rocker area and then just paint it black. But my main reason for building this one is to test my skill with 2 part clear. We'll see where it goes from there. Thanks for looking! ?

[ModelcarJR]

Thanks, Dan! I have used them too with the same experience. They don't last too long. 
 

I am still waiting on the 2 part clear and hear that the Post Office has it now.  I've detailed a few other things, the engine, interior, tires. I thought that the brown and tan interior would look OK but I am re-thinking the brown in the cargo area. I may repaint it tan. I added some paint to the engine and that's it and Fireball Modelworks Goodyear decals to the tires. I removed the side exhaust pipes from the frame and I may just add a thin piece of plastic to the rocker area and then just paint it black. But my main reason for building this one is to test my skill with 2 part clear. We'll see where it goes from there. Thanks for looking! ?

[ModelcarJR]

I have no idea why the previous post posted twice. 

I received my 2k urethane clear late Friday afternoon. I unpacked it and only two plain cans; no branding, no instructions, just a quart of clear and a 1/2 pint of activator. The plain label on the clear indicated 4:1. So, I got up this morning watching some videos, wondering about a reducer, if needed, and watching what others have done. I did have one false start thinking I could mix up the clear with the activator and wait till this afternoon when the humidity was down. Wrong! The clear in the bottle ( I use a bottom feed bottle with my Badger 150 airbrush) turned to gel by noon. So, I cleaned out the bottle, and mixed up a new batch using 16 ml. of clear and 4 ml. of activator. I then got busy with the airbrush. I did one light coat of clear, waited 5 minutes and then sprayed two wet coats of clear 5 minutes apart. I let it dry for a couple of hours and everything looks good. Its really a wet look and what I call a "show car" shine. There are a couple of little nits in the top (its always the top) so I will have to rub everything out but I am hoping to keep it to a minimum, mainly using scratch X to polish it out. 

I think the photo without the hood shows the difference in shine with and without the clear. the firewall, etc. was taped off and will be painted black and it is much duller than the fenders. Thanks for looking! ?

[TransAmMike]

On 8/1/2024 at 7:26 PM, ModelcarJR said:

Thanks, Dan! I have used them too with the same experience. They don't last too long. 
 

I am still waiting on the 2 part clear and hear that the Post Office has it now.  I've detailed a few other things, the engine, interior, tires. I thought that the brown and tan interior would look OK but I am re-thinking the brown in the cargo area. I may repaint it tan. I added some paint to the engine and that's it and Fireball Modelworks Goodyear decals to the tires. I removed the side exhaust pipes from the frame and I may just add a thin piece of plastic to the rocker area and then just paint it black. But my main reason for building this one is to test my skill with 2 part clear. We'll see where it goes from there. Thanks for looking! ?

Looking great John, pretty blue.  The shine before the clear looks pretty darn factory original (if that's what a person would want) but sure looks nice with high shine.  

As for the rear cargo area, the rear on the 1:1 car is tan like the interior.

Gonna be one fine 'Vette.

Edited August 3, 2024 by TransAmMike

[rv1963]

Yep your paint looks really good.

[KWT]

Diggin it John!

[ModelcarJR]

Thanks, Mike, Robert, and Jeremy! I appreciate your comments! Mike, I agree about the finish and I did repaint the cargo area tan. 

This one is done except for decals. I am also gonna add a piece at the rocker, actually it is a trim piece from the 67 Corvette that I have dechromed and painted black and it is drying now. I rubbed out the urethane clear with 3000 sandpaper and Scratch-X and it looked good to me so that is where I stopped. Its a little thick on the taillight panel so the Corvette lettering will not get any foil at this point as the letters are buried. I should have foiled them before clear. I also need to paint in the backup lights. But I sure do like the finish and I will come back with what I learned on my first urethane clear application. Thanks for looking! ?

 

[slusher]

 Very sharp corvette John"…

[ModelcarJR]

Thanks, Carl! I appreciate your comment! 

I've finished this one by adding a trim piece painted black at the rocker below the door and adding the decals. Since this is my first try with 2K Urethane clearcoat and I think it was successful, I wanted to reflect on lessons learned. I watched a couple of videos on You Tube before I bought the clearcoat.  They helped in preparing and buying the things I would need to do the airbrushing. 

First, in addition to the clearcoat and hardener, I also needed some small, clear plastic cups, something to measure with and some stirring sticks. This may seem very basic but is something that I haven't really dealt with before. Even when I airbrush paint, if it needs to be thinned for airbrush I normally just pour in the thinner in the bottle and shake it up. But according to the videos, even though the measuring doesn't need to be exact it does need to be 4:1 and shaking may cause bubbles in the mix that might affect the airbrushing. So, I found some clear cups in the house in old "picnic and hurricane supplies" box. I bought some 2 ml. plastic, disposable, pipets at Michaels and found some wooden stir sticks in my wife's acrylic painting supplies. 

Both videos emphasized using "fast drying" clear coat, so I bought the cheapest quart of clear coat with 1/2 pint of hardener that I could find on Amazon. That along with some 3,000, 5,000, and 7,000 sandpaper that I wanted to buy put the order just over $35 for the free shipping on my wife's temporary membership for Amazon. The sandpaper came the next day which worked out well so I rubbed out the paint on this corvette with it and it was a good experience since I could cut the sandpaper in small squares and just use my fingers on the square to rub out the paint. The cloths although fine for the same purpose always required a foam backing pad and it is getting troublesome toClear grip without my hands cramping up in my old age. 

The clearcoat and hardener came in about a week with no instructions and no label except for a white label on each can. The clearcoat indicated 2K Urethane Glamour Clearcoat Quart 4:1. and the other 1.2 pint can read 2k Urethane Glamour Clearcoat Standard Activator 1/2 pint. One video indicated that he used an additional part Mr. Surfacer and the other one didn't.  When I opened the cans they seemed to be thin enough for airbrush so I didn't add anything. But I did make a mistake - I mixed it up in the morning thinking I would paint in the less humid afternoon outdoors. Unfortunately, the clearcoat I mixed with the hardener turned to gel by noon. So one lesson learned - don't mix until ready to spray. 

Both videos indicated that you should do three wet coats after a light first coat. One indicated 15-20 PSI for the first coat and both indicated 30 PSI  for the wet coats. I mixed up 20 ml. of the clearcoat and ran out after 2 wet coats. But I am glad that I did since I think I have it on a bit too thick in a couple of places. I think I could have gotten away with 1 wet coat and I probably will do that in the future. One video indicated they had a wide spray pattern and were using a "5" needle. I don't even have a  "5 " needle and my biggest is a "3" for my Badger 150 airbrush. I don't know if a "5' would even fit in my airbrush.  So I think my spray pattern is much narrower and heavier, and therefore, it buried the Corvette logo in the back and I noticed that the headlight covers and door lines were kinda buried a bit.  So I think one wet coat will do it in the future. I rubbed out the finish the next day, using only the 3,000 sandpaper and some Scratch-X and it looks good to me. In fact, the photos don't really do it justice as it is a very smooth, glossy finish. I hope this might help anyone who is interested in using the 2k clearcoat. Final photos in the "Under Glass" section. Thanks for looking! ?

[KWT]

that side shot looks great... let's go check it out